Check out some lesser know facts about Gopala Krishna Gokhale on his 155th birth anniversary

New Delhi: Gopal Krishna Gokhale, born on May 9, 1866, in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra (then Bombay Presidency), was one of the establishment leaders of the Indian national movement. Gokhale was an exceptionally wise liberal nationalist, who made distinguished contributions towards social empowerment. Today, on his 155th birth anniversary, let’s check out some lesser-known facts about him.

1. Gokhale was one among the first generations of Indians who got a college education. He was graduated in Arts from Elphinstone College, at the age of 18. And he represented the category of highly-educated Indians, in those times.

2. Gokhale was working as a professor, before coming to politics. At the Fergusson College in Pune, he taught history and political economy and resigned from the job while entering into politics.

3. On June 12, 1905, Gokhale established the Servants of India Society in Maharashtra’s Pune. The SIS began campaigns for the promotion of education, health care and hygiene. It also made efforts to exterminate social evils such as untouchability and oppression of women. It is remarkable that Gokhle was one of the first big political leaders who raised the demand for free primary public education.

4. Regarded as a respected ‘moderate’ Congress leader, he was a mentor to both Mahatma Gandhi and Mohammed Ali Jinnah. Gandhi Ji, in his autobiography, called Gokhale as “pure as crystal, gentle as a lamb, brave as a lion and chivalrous to a fault and the most perfect man in the political field.” Similarly, Jinnah was so motivated by Gokhle that his aspiration, during the early years of his political life, was to become a “Muslim Gokhle”.

5. Gokhale actively participated in budget debates when he was a member of the Imperial Legislative Council and was a front-ranking Congressman who is often tagged as a political and social reformer. Moreover, his name is associated with an internationally-renowned economics institute –  Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Pune. The institute was established by Gokhale’s Servants of India Society in 1930, and it works with the mission to “provide education in all fields of economics with the singular purpose of contributing its might to enhance economic betterment and social welfare”.